Patient Accounts

Blastocystis 'hominis' News

March 25, 2011: Research publish complete genome sequence of Blastocystis

March 23, 2011: Culinary herbs common in Southeast Asian cooking inhibit growth of Blastocystis in-vitro

February 12, 2011: Diagnostic methods commonly used in laboratories fail to identify most Blastocystis infections

January 17, 2011: US FDA researchers report on new assay for Blastocystis

November 18, 2010: BRF co-authors study on detection of Blastocystis in samples from patients with inflammatory bowel disease and IBS

March 4, 2010: Rats infected with Blastocystis exhibit high levels of oxidative stress in a new paper from Parasitology Research

February 10, 2010: Are any of the antiprotozoal drugs really eradicating Blastocystis 'hominis' infection in patients? A recent review: "Eradication of Blastocystis carriage with antimicrobials: reality or delusion?" says they may not be working.

February 9, 2010: Patients with ulcerative colitis are more likely to experience a relapse in illness if they are infected with Blastocystis and other protozoa

January 15, 2010: BRF co-authors the world's first report on subtyping of Blastocystis 'hominis' isolates from Egypt

Older News

NOTE: The correct term is now Blastocystis not Blastocystis 'hominis' as there is no Blastocystis unique to humans.

Debilitating infection in 49-year old

The contributor below developed Blastocystis 'hominis' infection years ago, and has had ongoing chronic GI illness since then.

From: --------------
Sent: Saturday, January 16, 2010 8:12 AM
To: director@bhomcenter.org
Subject: RE: Resistant Blastocystis 'hominis' treatment -- a question

I am suffering from an arthritis-like condition (in low back and groin). This is still the case, and it’s now 16 months I have been suffering….this is in addition to the abdominal problems and occasional “leaky gut” symptoms for the last 3 years.. .......The combination of “arthritis” and abdominal pain is a nightmare when both are flaring at the same time. I used to be a very physically active 49 year old (regularly biking up and down alpine passes where we live), but this has been physically debilitating.

I have been following a low carb, no wheat, high-protein diet for some time (though prone to lapses when I see a bag of tortilla crisps lying around!)….with lots of fresh vegetables and very little fruit (due to sugar).

One question I have been mulling over is – if they problem is the behavior of the immune system, then is there anything except taking anti-inflammatory substance that one can do? For example, should we be seeking to boost the immune system (e.g. using goldenseal for example) or to dampen it down?